Palin weighs in on GOP debate, candidates

DES MOINES -- The GOP presidential debate Thursday night did little to change former Alaska governor Sarah Palin's view there is still room in the Republican field for "a common sense conservative" to enter the race, Palin said here Friday.

"There is still plenty of room in that field for common sense conservatives who have executive experience," she said. "Watching the debate not just last night but watching this whole process over the last year it certainly shows me that yeah, there is plenty of room for more people."

While saying nothing about her presidential ambitions, Palin said she was glad that Texas Gov. Rick Perry was entering the race and said he "adds another choice for Americans to consider heading into 2012."

"I appreciate that he's willing to jump into this arena and be part of this," she said.

Perry is expected to announce he will run for president on Saturday in South Carolina. He will travel to Iowa on Sunday.

Palin also addressed the recent treatment of Rep. Michele Bachmann, R-Minn., in the press and in the debate last night.

Asked about the Newsweek cover that showed a wild-eyed Bachmann staring into space with the headline "Queen of Rage," Palin said she was also featured wearing running shorts in a cover on the magazine.

"I think the headline is really worse than the picture," she said.

Palin was also asked what she thought of the question Bachmann was asked during the debate about whether she would "submit" to her husband if she was elected president.

"Anything in a debate is fair game. I've been asked the goofiest questions and the strangest questions too in my years in public office," Palin said. "She articulated what she feels in her heart and to her submission means respect, she explained it."

While Palin is not listed on the straw poll ballot, she was mobbed by the press like she was a frontrunner from the moment she set foot on the fairgrounds.

Around noon the word went out that Palin, her husband Todd and a small entourage had descended on the Iowa state fair sending reporters scrambling through livestock exhibits to find her.

Palin's arrival in Iowa the day before the straw poll is just the latest in a series of trips the former vice presidential nominee has made that coincides with major events for the GOP field.

Earlier this summer when she happened to arrive in Iowa the day after Bachmann's campaign launch and in May when she New Hampshire the same day as former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney official presidential announcement.

Asked why she was in Iowa, Palin said she was simply "accepting an invitation to get to be here to experience this wonderful historic event" on the bus tour she launched in May.

To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.

About Catalina Camia

Catalina Camia leads the OnPolitics online community and has been at USA TODAY since 2005. She has been a reporter or editor covering politics and Congress for two decades, including stints at The Dallas Morning News and Congressional Quarterly. Follow her at @USATOnPolitics.